Bologna University students
on Tuesday disrupted a class being held by a political science
professor and top editorialist at leading Corriere della Sera
daily, saying his views make him a 'warmonger'.
This was the second day protesters from the self-styled
leftist Autonomous University Collective (CUA) disrupted
Professor Angelo Panebianco's class by deluging him with
questions and playing sound recordings of war bombings, among
other tactics.
Panebianco has editorialized that Italy has relied so long
on United States military protection that it finds itself
unprepared to defend itself against current threats, such as the
so-called Islamic State (ISIS) insurgency in Libya.
"The 'good' pacificist sentiments we developed - not only
the entirely healthy idea that everything possible must be done
to avert war, but also the sick notion that one must not equip
oneself for self-defence - are a luxury we have been able to
afford thanks to (U.S.) protection," Panebianco wrote in a
February 16 op-ed in Corriere della Sera titled 'Will We Ever Be
Ready in Libya?'
Panebianco on Tuesday declined to comment on the incidents.
Emilia Romagna Governor Stefano Bonaccini from the
center-left Democratic Party (PD) expressed solidarity for the
beleaguered professor.
"Such gestures have no place here because they have nothing
to do with freedom of opinion and of expression," the governor
said.
This was echoed by PD Senate whip Luigi Zanda, who said
Panebianco was the "victim of violent bullying and intolerance,
which takes us back to very painful times of our history".
"This is undemocratic behavior, and certainly not leftist
(behavior)," Zanda said.
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